Thailand’s New residential leasing law effective on May 1

Residential property leasing will now be deemed to be a contract-controlled business following publication in the Government Gazette last week.

The notification defines a “residential property leasing business” as a business that leases (or subleases) five units of property or more to individual lessees, for residential purposes, in exchange for a fee collected by the business operator, regardless of whether or not the units are in the same building.

Property is defined to include any accommodation, house, condominium unit, apartment, or other kind of residential property leased for residential purposes, excluding dormitories and hotels which are regulated separately.

Property consulting firm Jones Lang LaSalle (Thailand) Ltd (JLL) said that the new residential leasing law , effective on May 1, will make it more challenging for landlords to handle tenants who violate any of the agreed-upon terms and conditions of a binding contract.

The notification imposes the following requirements

1. Residential lease agreements must include a version in Thai, and must contain the following…